Pennsylvania Head Injury Lawyers
Philadelphia – New Jersey – New York
Head injuries are among the most devastating events anyone can suffer. The reason for this is that a head injury can lead not only to substantial physical trauma, but permanent and disabling cognitive and emotional issues. Victims of head trauma often have substantial medical costs that will continue over a life time. In addition, services such as physical, emotional and occupational therapy might be necessary to enable the victim to live his life independently and return to work, if this is even possible. These kinds of therapy are extremely expensive and insurance normally only covers a limited amount of the cost.
If your head injury was caused by someone else’s negligence, you should not be required to pay for the cost of your recovery or the life time of treatment and care you will require. The person or business which was negligent should be responsible to pay for your bills as well as your lost wages and pain and suffering.
For help with your claim, please contact our head injury lawyers. We will discuss what happened and help you determine if another party can be held financially liable for the harm you suffered.
What is a Head Injury?
A head injury is any trauma to the head. A hit to the head might result in just an external scratch or wound, but it also might result in traumatic brain injury (TBI.) When we were young, if we hit our heads, we were often told to shake it off and move on, especially if we didn’t pass out. Now we understand that even a mild head injury can have a long-lasting or permanent impact. You do not need to lose consciousness to suffer a head or brain injury. One area in which head injuries have become big news is in sports. The NFL is getting a lot of attention over lawsuits relating to brain damage, but parents need to be aware of the potential long lasting problems from their children playing sports starting in elementary school and going through college.
Common Sources of Head Injuries
Head injuries can be caused by any blow to the head. This includes car accidents, falls, bike accidents, sports injuries – really any time you hit your head or your head experiences a rapid acceleration and deceleration (such as whiplash in an auto accident) you can suffer a head or brain injury. The most common source of head injuries are motor vehicle crashes. Medical incidents can cause head injuries as well. If you suffer an embolism leading to a stroke or a brain bleed leading to a hemorrhagic stroke, you might suffer a TBI. In some cases, medical negligence can cause a stroke or worsen a stroke that might otherwise have been minor.
Chances for Recovery
If you suffer a minor head injury, chances are good that you will fully recover. However, do not assume that a minor bump means a minor head injury. Whether a brain injury is minor or major really depends on the symptoms and amount of damage. It is not always possible to tell from the initial event how serious the damage will be.
Go to the Doctor or Hospital
With any hit to the head, it is important that you get checked out as soon as possible. Sometimes, a person will seem fine immediately after the impact, but will become very ill later. This is because, in a very severe injury, the brain might swell. If the brain swells it begins to press against the skull. It is the pressing against the skull that often causes a substantial amount of secondary damage to the brain beyond the initial injury. It is especially important to go to the ER if you lose consciousness after any hit to the head or when your head is rapidly thrown forward and backward.
If you suffer a serious brain injury, chances for recover vary greatly. The most recovery will occur within the first six months to one year after the event. As a result, proper medical care and therapy are crucial during this time period. Additional recovery can occur throughout the person’s life. The more serious the injury, the greater the damage to the brain, the more the TBI will impact the person’s life going forward.
Financial Compensation
Head injuries often require expensive treatment. In addition to the initial medical costs, serious damage to the brain will require assessment and therapy to help the person move forward with his life. Often, the therapy and medical care will be a lifetime requirement. In addition, the home may require modification so that the victim can move around without falling, cook and perform other tasks. These modifications are also quite expensive.
If your injury was due to a car accident, medical malpractice or some other form of negligence, you should not have to take on the costs of someone else’s mistake. Contact the Philadelphia head injury attorneys at Lowenthal & Abrams by calling 888-979-7298. We will discuss your case and help you determine whether you have a lawsuit. There is no charge for the call and no fee unless we obtain compensation for you.
